Jon Landau Says Avatar 2 Is Four Years Away

This morning, Hannah attended a preview screening of several scenes from the new, 3D version of Titanic and afterwards, got to exchange words with producer Jon Landau.

I hope she’s going to be able to remember enough of what was said to bring you a full piece later – dictaphones and other recording devices were curiously banned – but she’s just filled me in on one particular avenue of conversation.

When the Avatar sequels were first announced, I believe that we were told to expect them in 2013 and 2014. Well, time keeps on slipping (slipping, slipping) into the future. According to Landau this morning, the first sequel is “four years away.”

So that’s 2016 by a literal count, though we could be bendy and assume that Christmas 2015 would also be an option. Expect Avatar 3 a year later, as the performance capture and cinematography would take place back-to-back with the second film.

Landau promised that Avatar 2 was going to showcase advanced technology, from the 3D camera system used to the CG and performance capture, but also in terms of a higher framerate. This, he says, is the new frontier that he and Cameron are most interested in pushing.